History Of The Two-piece Bathing Suit

A Walk Into the Past: RETRO bathing suits at RETROPOLITAN

But this dynamic store with three floors of wonderful items is far from a museum, although when I go in, I think perhaps I am in a gallery of some kind as I view products and objects from the past, but in an updated, funky way. Yet Cindi's shop is also very elegant and each display (I love the hats in particular) is crafted with an artist's eye. as an "underwater ballerina," a version of synchronized swimming...She was arrested for indecent exposure because her swimsuit showed arms, legs and the neck. After that, Kellerman modified the suit to have long arms and legs and a collar, still keeping the close fit that revealed the shapes underneath...She later marketed a line of bathing suits and her style of one-piece suits came to be known as "the Annette Kellerman."   The swimming suit was ideal for the androgynous athletic figure that fashion suited styles of the 20s.  It looked very similar to male swimming costumes of an earlier era. The swimsuit legs stopped at an unflattering point mid thigh and beneath the swimsuit legs were built-in modesty shorts.  Men wore wool, one-piece suits as well. Feminine cotton printed bathing suits often with little over skirts to hide the thighs gradually replaced the ugly 20's fashion.  The 20's suit, which sometimes sported cutout sections in the midriff panel, disappeared as it evolved into a two piece garment.  By this era most of us would recognise the late 1930's swimsuit as one that bears some relationship to swimwear of today. corset manufacturers saw a gap in the market.  Corsetry was losing ground, but the new more revealing swim suits really needed experts to design garments that hid those small imperfections in a woman's shape.  They achieved this by adding stretch tummy control panels to hold in the stomach. Manufacturers also used bra cups and boning to give bust support. Costumes could then be worn either strapless or with small straps that buttoned onto the inside. The first bikinis were introduced just after World War II. Early examples were not very different from the women's two pieces common since the 1920s, except that they had a gap below the breast line allowing for a section of bare midriff. They were named after Bikini Atoll, the site of several nuclear weapons tests, for their supposed explosive effect on the viewer.